


The Clown Princess of Crime

by Nixter97



Category: Batman: Arkham (Video Games), Harley Quinn (Arkham Knight)
Genre: ArkhamVerse, Batman villains, Other, Villains
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-04
Updated: 2017-07-06
Packaged: 2018-09-21 22:00:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9568670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nixter97/pseuds/Nixter97
Summary: After Arkham City shuts down, Harley Quinn is taken into custody, only to escape once again. She flees Gotham and ends up in Blüdhaven. While in hiding, she comes across some of Joker's old gang, and takes over her puddin's thugs yet again. Only this time, they're not only going to kill the Bat, they're gonna become the next big gang in Gotham! *Before the events of Arkham Knight!*





	1. Slap-Happy

**Chapter 1: Slap-Happy**

The sound of an alarm rang through Harley's ears, snapping her out of her thoughts. It's been days since she couldn't sleep. Day after day, Harleen Quinzel would continue to think about the death of her puddin', followed by more graving thoughts during the nights. Sighing, Harley turns off her alarm, not bothering to check the time. What difference does it make? Why should the time matter to her? The days are the same, anyway. Ever since her escape from prison, Harley's been keeping a low profile. She ditched Gotham and found herself hiding out in Blüdhaven. Her arrival in the city was a little sloppy, for Nightwing had managed to track her (of course, she blames Batman for the info of her skipping town). After that bad run-in with the Dark Knight's partner, Harley managed to escape with a laughing gas grande. She ran as fast as she could, and before she even knew it, the broken clown found herself in an abandoned hotel near a construction site. It wasn't the most sanitary place to live, but for Harley, it was better than living in the streets where she can be visible to Nightwing.

Harley's days in Blüdhaven were pretty much the same: wake up, get dressed, hope to find some food, and then hide away, planning a revenge strategy on B-Man. The routine was driving Harley crazier than usual! After multiple plans, not one seemed logical enough! Of course, she couldn't do all of this on her own. Harley needed an army. Hell, she needed the old gang back - the guys that worked for her and Joker! Word on their whereabouts were currently unknown, but Harley was determined to find them. She needed her boys right now, more than ever! If one of Harley's plans were going to work, then she would need all the help she can get!

"Guess I better start lookin'," Harley says to herself while going through her pile of clothes. Her blonde hair was currently tied into a singular pony tail, with her red and black dyed parts as the actual pony. After spending ten minutes going through her clothes, she finally found the outfit she was looking for: a white shredded t-shirt with the words, "HA-HA!" written on several areas. She also wore a black short skirt with matching high-heeled boots. She applied her makeup, but not too much. She didn't want to be recognizable when she goes out. It was still a little dark out, which meant Harley needed to go out and grab some food, maybe rob a gun shop, and then get the hell back to the abandoned hotel. Before heading out, Harley applied red lipstick and then proceeded to kiss one of her many Joker posters in her room. "I miss you so much, Puddin'..." she sighed before exiting.

The moment Harley stepped outside, it started to rain. Just my fucking luck, she thought. It wasn't foreign for it to rain in Blüdhaven, but it usually stopped this time during the day. Harley being Harley, just kept on walking with no fucks to be given. She dealt with worse rain showers, and a majority of them took place on high buildings while battling the Bat. The female clown makes a right turn when she reaches the end of the sidewalk, running into a man who was going full speed.

"Ouch! Watch where ya runnin', bub!" she spat at the man.

Said man turned around to gawk at her. "H-Harley...? Is that...really you?"

Harley's mouth hangs open. This man knew her? Oh god, was he a cop? Less-likely, for this guy sounded relieved to see her. Before she could ask the man questions, an officer appeared in sight, flashing his light and aiming his gun at the two. "Freeze!" he shouts. Both Harley and her acquaintance exchange looks before the guy whips out his own gun and quickly shoots the officer in the leg, causing him a great deal of pain and falls on the ground.

"Come with me!" the man yells, grabbing Harley by her arm and thus, the duo sprint out of sight.

* * *

 

For what seemed like an eternity of running, the two were finally able to catch their breaths by the docks. Groaning in pain from the running (in high heels), Harley removes her boots and massages her feet. The man notices her actions and quickly takes charge, massaging them for her. Harley almost kicked him in the face, but stopped, feeling flattered and relieved that the pain is flowing away. Still, there was the matter of introduction to discuss.

"Now then," Harley smacks the man's hands away and steals his gun, aiming it right at his face. "Who the hell are you and why do you know me?!"

The man sighs, "You really don't remember, do ya Harley?" he stands up, gulping as his own gun rises by Harley's hand to meet his face once more. "I was in Joker's gang! Name's Slappy, remember? I was J's right-hand guy!"

Harley froze. How could she forget? Slappy was Joker's original second in command (before she joined the gang, that is). He got the weapons for the gang, lead most of the missions that Joker assigned, and was the best cook they had. When Harley first arrived and was introduced as Joker's girl, it was Slappy's job to show her all the ropes of what it meant to be in the Joker's gang. After she got the jiff of it, Harley become Joker's second in command (not that Slappy minded, for he understood). Slappy was also Harley's personal bodyguard whenever she went out and did a few "errands" for her puddin'. Out of all the thugs in Joker's gang, Slappy was the one who Harley could trust and be friends with. Only five people was known to be on Harley Quinn's good side: Joker, Slappy, Mr. Hammer, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman. Harley lowered the gun, tears forming in her eyes. She quickly wraps her arms around Slappy's neck, sniffing in his neck.

"Slappy! Oh my god, it's you! Oh god, I'm so sorry!"

"Shh, it's okay Harley, I understand why you did what you did. It's been a while. Now," he pulls away from the clown girl just far enough to wipe her tears away with his thumbs and smiles down at her. "Enough tears, girl. What's been going on with you? You vanished the moment Arkham City shut down."

Harley sighs, nodding while wiping her face. "I didn't want to stay in Gotham, Slap. The moment I escaped prison, I fled and ended up here, in Blüdhaven. I've been staying at an abandoned hotel ever since."

"For a whole month, Harley?! Golly..."

There was an awkward silence for a while, but that was when Harley realized something. "Where are the others?"

Slappy sighed, rubbing his neck as he leaned against a land post. "Half of 'em believed in you when you took over for that brief time in Arkham City, when you almost killed Batman and Robin. Those guys are hiding out with me in this city. As for the other half, they quit. They think of you as a joke, Harley - always have, actually. They think having you in charge would be bad news. They thought you've gone crazy after J died. Well, crazier. Word is they joined up with some Joker poser in these parts. Me and the boys who still have loyalty to you have been trying to track 'em down and kill 'em. But now that you're here..."

"...I can kill 'em myself." Harley's eyes shot daggers. "And they're workin' for some douche bag who thinks he can level up to my Joker?! The fuckin' nerve of some people!"

"Exactly what we've been thinkin'!"

Harley hangs Slappy his gun back, grinning at him. "Take me to your hideout, Slappy. We're gonna plan a play date!"

**To Be Continued...**


	2. Play Time with Harley

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley teaches one of her old thugs a lesson and sends a message.

Harley was greeted with the sound of whistles and a round of applause once Slappy lead her into the room that was full of half of the Joker's old gang. She could honestly say that she felt more at home with these guys - the ones who still believed in her as their boss - their new boss. With Joker dead, it only made logical sense to have Harley Quinn, the Joker's girl, the clown princess of crime to be the new leader of the gang. However, not all of them thought the same way. After Harley's latest attempt on killing the Batman as revenge for Joker's death, the other half of Joker's gang took off after deciding that having Harley in charge would be a total nightmare. They tried joining up with some of the other crime lords in Gotham's underworld. Penguin, Two-Face, hell, even Riddler of all people! But none of them wanted anything to do with Joker's gang. They all had some sort of beef with the clown, even if he was pushing daises. Such a shame, though; too bad Harley had to kill them. Speaking of which...

"I'd like to thank you boys for welcoming me back! It's so great to see the faces of the ones who look up to me!" Harley was met with another round of applause, which flattered her. But then...she frowns. "Now then, from what Slappy had told me, the other half of you bozos decided to go skippin' out on me! They dare to question my power over you chumps! They dare to question Mista J! And they fucking dare join up with some douche bag who has the freakin' nerve to pose as the "new Joker"! "New Joker"! Ha! As if that'll ever happen! Let me just say that as long as I am still alive and breatin', there will be no such thing as a Joker wannabe!"

"DAMN RIGHT!" They all yell.

Harley smirks, raising the small hand-gun that Slappy gave her. "I'm planning on taking on this cocky son-of-a-bitch! Who's with me?!"

The uproar from her old gang was enough to convince Harley.

"Tell me about this chump," Harley demands, walking into the back room with Slappy. The other boys were currently celebrating outside; drinking and singing away while also getting their weapons together.

Slappy sets down two bottles of beer on the table between them and takes a seat opposite of her. "His name is The Chuckler - the "new" Joker. As you already know, they have the other half of Joker's gang. He's a petty big guy, Harley. 6"11, packed with muscle, and is skilled with swords and knives."

"Yeah?" Harley sets her bottle down, glaring at her friend. "I'm skilled with a gun - he'll be dead the moment I set foot into his lair."

"That's the thing, Harley: you can't just go barging into this guy's turf. Ya'll have to get invited."

This causes the female clown to raise an eyebrow. "Invited?"

Nodding, Slappy continues. "Yeah, he does this thing every-now-and-then with some of the other crime bosses in the area. It's a big party at his place - any criminal is invited - as long as they have a good-enough record in Blüdhaven."

"I'm Mista J's late lover - his one and only! I've done sooo many things, Slappy - you know that! My record's in Gotham - Blüdhaven's sister city! I'm pretty sure I'm big enough to make it into the "party" that this bozo hosts."

Slappy shakes his head. "Easier said than done, I'm afraid. He doesn't like ya, Harl. Word is that's the main reason why he decided to allow half of J's gang to stay. He thinks you're pathetic. "Couldn't even kill the Bat when she had the chance", he'd always say. If anything, he's just too high on that horse of his. Me, and the rest of J's gang, wanna see him fall."

"And now that I'm back, I can make that happen." Harley grins.

"Hey, boss?"

Harley and Slappy turn towards the door, spotting a couple of the gang members. When Slappy points at Harley in question to the title, they all nod. Harley stands up and skips over towards them. "Yeah, boys?"

"We couldn't help but overhear the conversation, and we think we have a solution..."

Harley grins. "Do tell,"

They proceed to lead Harley into the basement, where a beaten man was tied into a chair and had a bag over his face. Judging from all the dried blood splattered everywhere and the weak condition that he's in, Harley assumed that he's been down here for a long, long time. Harley turns to the thugs, pointing at the man being held hostage. "And who the hell is this?"

"One of J's old gang members who abandoned us," one of the thugs claim. "We caught him roaming around the streets one night with a couple other traitors. Killed the others, but kept this one around to play with when we got bored. We'd be honored if you can take this guy out, and maybe, we dunno...send him back to Chuckler as a message?"

Harley grins, taking the baseball bat that one of the thugs hand over to her. "My pleasure..." she turns to the hostage and rips the bag off of his head. Using her hand that wasn't holding the bat, Harley lifts the thug's face, meeting eye contact. She smiles wickedly at him. "'Ello! Missed me?"

The man's eyes widen. "H-H-Harley...?"

"That's my name, don't wear it out." she raises the bat, then proceeds the swing, causing him to crash onto the hard concrete floor. The thugs laugh as they watch Harley beat the man's brain's out. When Harley was worn out, and had more blood on her than her menstrual cycle, she turns to her applauding thugs with a smile. "Take this piece of garbage to Chuckler. I want him to know who he's dealing with. Oh, and don't forget to leave a note on the body; he needs a name for the invitation after all."

Four of the thugs nod and proceed to take the dead body out of the basement. Grinning, Harley turns to the last two thugs, tossing them her bat. "Please be dears and keep watch outside. Momma's gotta get ready for a party~."


End file.
